Understanding the Analytical Behavioral Style
Being aware of your and your employees' primary and backup workplace behavior styles will make you a better leader. This self-awareness helps you to:
- more quickly engage and motivate each of your employees
- recognize your own strengths and weaknesses
- communicate more effectively with each employee by tailoring conversations to fit their workplace behavioral style.
Someone with an Analytical behavioral work style tends to take a precise, deliberate and systematic approach to work. Typically they need to gather and evaluate a lot of data before taking any action. They are industrious, objective, and well-organized. Generally cautious, they are self-controlled, preferring analysis over emotion. Clarity and order are essential to them.
Members of your team with this primary work style tend to have the following strengths:
- accurate
- analytical
- detail oriented
- thorough
- high standards
- orderly
- controlled
They are most likely to take pride in being organized, punctual, and dependable. Structure is important. Working towards a clear goal keeps them on track. When working with colleagues who are unprepared or undisciplined they can become impatient and frustrated.
Limitations to this work style include:
- too hard on themselves
- too critical of others
- a perfectionist
- overly cautious
- overly sensitive
- needs to be right
Leaders with an Analytical style will benefit from being aware of the constraints of their style and becoming conscious of their tendency to want to be right. They can be viewed as unrealistic and demanding. Typically they resist compromise in problem situations. Employees with an analytical work style will become anxious and stressed when things don't go as planned.
Coaching employees with an Analytical work style will almost always include supporting them to become less rigid and impatient with other employees. Helping them develop skills to consider other people's opinions and input will help them be more productive and better team members. They need to be supported to stop being so hard on themselves and encouraged to be less judgmental and rigid towards others.
Make sure that they are in the correct position within the team. These employees are the backbone of many teams. They are adept at handling details and committed to completing the project regardless of how much time it takes. Groups doing projects requiring analysis, organization, and details will prosper when this work style is part of the team.
Employees with an Analytical work style are good organizers with a strong opinion about how things should be done. They prioritize their time and work efficiently.
It is important for managers to communicate with these employees in a supportive way. For example:
Instead of "Why didn't you get this done on time?" (impatient, frustrated)
Use this: "I see that you didn't meet your deadlines. This put the team behind. What we can do to make sure you can complete work on time?
Instead of: "This is the right way to look at the data and finish the project" (need to be correct, critical of others)
Use this: "You are viewing the data differently than I am. I would like the benefit of your input. What did you see in the data that led to your conclusions?"
Feedback will be most effective when provided in a data-driven, analytical way which will be motivating and keep these employees engaged. Acknowledgment of their strengths in organization and analysis is essential. Providing feedback regarding less optimal behaviors can be offered analytically. For example, "your approach is making it uncomfortable for other team members" versus "when you aren't open to other people's perspective it shuts down team members and we lose their valuable perspective."
Because these employees are excellent at managing time and priorities they will thrive when given opportunities to take and display responsibility, be of service to others, demonstrate leadership, and organize things or people.